communicating for

LEARNERS 2009Persisting with Passion for Purposeful Teaching

featured in this issueHot 5Persisting with Passion for Purposeful Teaching This Year I Will... Stretch Did You Know? WorkshopsVisionary Status

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On Friday, February 6, at the Third Annual BGSU Teaching and Learning Fair in the Lenhart Grand Ballroom, Dr. Barbara Millis presented her keynote address, Persisting with Passion: A Summary of Break-throughs in Teaching and Learning. Her address focused on the innovations of cooperative learning, deep learning, the research on how people learn, and other findings that enable teachers to become intentional, purposeful educators.

Dr. Millis stressed the importance of cooperative learning and offered a few helpful suggestions to make cooperative learning beneficial to both the students and instructors. She reminded us that for cooperative learning to work, we must build a community with out students. She emphasized the importance of accountability within groups and how important it is to assign and clarify specific roles in the group. According to Millis, If we want students to learn deeply our key concepts, then we need to deliberately build in opportunities for students independent learning (after they have received the needed background information to approach homework strategically), which is then followed in class with opportunities for interaction and active learning to reinforce and reemphasize these key concepts (the deep learning model). Millis asserts that purposeful teaching is the number one thing that faculty can work to improve their teaching.

The keynote also focused on the changes that have occurred in academia. Millis stressed that the old-fashioned stand-and-deliver mode of lecturing is no longer the primary method of teaching.

She implored faculty to integrate technology and address the need for community, even in large classes.

Dr. Millis is a frequent presenter at conferences including the Lilly Teaching Conference, the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AACU), the Council of Independent Colleges (CIC) and the Teaching Professor Conference. She publishes articles on a variety of faculty development topics such as cooperative learning, peer classroom observations, the professional portfolio, syllabus construction, classroom assessment/research, critical thinking, writing for publication, writing across the curriculum, academic games, and course redesign.

Keynote handouts can be downloaded from the Centers website, http://www.bgsu.edu/ctl/page44312.html, and the address can be viewed on BGSUs digital video streaming server, http://dvss.bgsu.edu. Use video search in the MyBGSU Portal and then keyword Millis.

To play video, click the picture above (Adobe Reader works best for viewing). To access online, visit http://bgsu.edu/downloads/provost/file62025.mov

SPRING No. 1

HOT 51Soshikusoshiku.comA powerful tool that manages class assign-ments. It keeps track of due dates and notifies you via email or SMS

2A.nnotatea.nnotate.comEasily give, collect and store detailed notes on documents and web pages

3The Idea Centertheideacenter.org/IDEAPapersA nonprofit organization that serves colleges and universities committed to improving learning, teaching, and leadership performance

4Edublogsedublogs.tvA video hosting site dedicated to education

5Group Tablegrouptable.comWeb-based software and success network developed specifically to help student groups improve document management, project planning and communication

(click the link to visit)

This Year I Will Stretch: Intentions for Teaching and Learning Success

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Last summer, at 41, Dara Torres became the oldest female swimmer to compete in the Olympics and win multiple medals. What was her secret? She engaged in a rigorous stretching regimen that repeatedly and regularly pushed her body to its limits, allowing it to gradually get stronger and more flexiblein a word, better. For teachers and students, the same principle can be appliedstretching to our limits in order to gradually improve our teaching over time.

The Stretch PrincipleIn This Year I Will: How to Finally Change a Habit, Keep a Resolution, or Make a Dream Come True1, M. J. Ryan brings to light the principle of stretching in order to change or move from a stable or stationary state toward a preferred one. Similar to physical stretching, self-improvement stretching can be a little uncomfortable or awkward and most often requires time and persistence. Ryan describes three zones of existence: comfort, stretch, and stress. Stretch is where change (or learning) occurs.According to Ryan, naturally we long for the comfort of the familiar. For our students, their familiar might appear as resistance to learning. For faculty, holding onto the familiar can be the reason for not changing a method of teaching or revising an activity that could be better. Ryan continues, to learn anything, we have to leave the comfort of the known for the awkwardness of the untried. And we must accept our ineptness as the price of

beginning, trusting that, like adolescence, well grow out of that awkward stage and blossom into mastery if we just hang in there. In order to create positive change or foster self-development, it may be helpful to remind ourselves and our students that being uncomfortable is normal, perhaps a preferred prerequisite for the process. Without this discomfort, we are not pushing ourselves, not stretching nearly enough toward our goals. We need to guide students to become aware of this discomfort, understand that its normal, and know it will pass once consistent effort is put forth. The true challenge for them is in overcoming this initial barrier or resistance. For the instructor, the challenge is in setting the optimal stretch point where all students have the opportunity to grow, learn, and create long-term, deep experiences that will last (durable learning).

Get Awkward to LearnCreating opportunities for students to get awkward is the first step in making a change. Ken Bain (What the Best College Teachers Do) and cognitive psychologists call this concept cognitive dissonancewhere learners encounter concepts or new information that conflicts or challenges some preexisting understanding. The learning happens when this dissonance is sorted through, examined, and

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visionarySTATUS

Benjamin Zanderteacher, conductor, speaker

Benjamin Zanders career in music and teaching is filled with prestige. He began his musical career by studying under his father in his native England, and later studied under musicians such as Benjamin Britten and Gaspar Cassado. For 43 years, at the New England Conservatory, Zander has been teaching his music Interpretation class. He also teaches master classes worldwide, and is the Artistic Director of a boarding school for young accomplished artists.During his January visit to BGSUs Kobacker Hall, Benjamin presented on The Art of Possibilities, derived from the book he authored with his wife. In his speech, Zander told the audience of an interesting assignment he does with every class he teaches: giving the students an A to begin the semester, and telling them to write a letter to themselves in the future describing why they earned and kept the A. At the end of the semester, Zander returns each students letter for them to reflect on their learning. Zanders creative ideas have left an impression on BGSU. President Cartwright drew her inspiration from Zanders book and speech for her recent State of the University address entitled, The Promise of Possibility. Benjamins unique perspectives and syntheses in music, teaching, and foresight, have distinguished him as a visionary this issue.www.benjaminzander.com

This Year I Will (cont.)

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reformulated or transformed into something new. This process takes time, patience, and practicefor the teacher and the student. Moreover, it takes a sense of courage, adventure, and abandon, with a dash of trust. Ryan suggests keeping in mind that we dont need to be perfect the first few times we do something, which hopefully helps to relieve some of the tension and apprehension when taking on anything new.

This Year I WillOver the past several months, the theme of change has inundated our lives. From the presidential election to New Years resolutions, the pressures to improve and do better surround us. Even here at BGSU we are asked to think about and share our great ideas for improving the University and student experience. Learning, including learning how to teach, is not meant to be easy. But like most things, the process of learning becomes easier more practice, effort, and a little stretching.

In 2009, what are your intentions for change, improvement, and learning? What about your students intentions for learning in your courses? A first step, and a simple activity is to complete this phrase, This year I will So, go ahead and stretch a little, get awkward, and encourage or challenge your students to do the same. By doing so, you will move closer to what you intend to learn and who you intend to be.

Stretching Opportunities

Start stretching your teaching methods on a regular basis by attending CTL discussion or workshop sessions or by visiting our Interact blog or CTL Resources webpages. We also have an extensive library of books you can explore or borrow. Visit these and other professional development opportunities at http://www.bgsu.edu/ctl

1 Ryan, M. J. (2006). This year I will: How to finally change a habit, keep a resolution, or make a dream come true. New York: Broadway Books.

Discussions and WorkshopsBowling Green ExperienceDiscussions

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Service Learning in Business ClassesWednesday, February 25, 1:30pm-2:30pm

Exploring Latino/a Culture through Service-Learning

Monday, March 30, 12:00pm-1:00pm

Accommodations for Student SuccessThursday, February 19, 12:30pm-1:45pm Thursday, February 26, 2:00pm-3:15pm

Service LearningCommunity Partnership Series Faculty Focus Series

An Introduction to Service-Learning Pedagogy

Tuesday, February 17, 11:00am-12:30pm

Getting Involved with NonprofitsWednesday, February 18, 11:30am-12:30pm

PathStone: Connecting You to OpportunitiesWednesday, March 4, 11:30am-12:30pm

Bowling Green Chamber of CommerceTuesday, March 24, 10:00am-11:00am

AssessmentDiscussions

Reflecting to Learn Using Formative Assessment (CATs)

Tuesday, February 24, 12:00pm-1:00pm

Using Formative Feedback to Guide Instruction (with Clickers)

Wednesday, April 15, 3:00pm-4:00pm

Using ePortfolios to Assess Student LearningThursday, April 23, 1pm-2pm

WorkshopsSNAP is The Buzz

Monday, March 2, 8:30am-11:30am

Monday, March 16, 8:30am-10:30am

Discussions WorkshopsScholarship of Teaching and Learning

Science of Learning with Diane Halperns DVSS presentation

Friday, February 27, 2:00pm-3:30pm

Pedagogies and Publications with Second Life and Facebook

Monday, March 16, 11:30am-12:30pm

SoTL 101: An Introduction to the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

Thursday, March 19, 11:00am-12:00pm

Engaging Students In Peer-To-Peer Presentations Of Course End-Of-Chapter Questions

Tuesday, March 24, 12:00pm-1:00pm

Motivation 101Thursday, April 16, 3:00pm-4:00pm

The Work-in-Progress Workshop: Why Sharing Your Research Early Can Help You Publish

Tuesday, April 14, 9:30am-11:00am

RefWorks: Bibliographic Management SoftwareElectronic Reading room 142, Jerome Library

Thursday, February 19, 1:00pm-2:15pmFriday, March 6, 10:30am-11:45amThursday, April 2, 2:30pm-3:45pm

Brain Rules: Tailoring Learning for Student Success

Thursday, March 12, 1:00pm-2:30pm Friday, April 10, 2:30pm-4:00pm

BGSU Teachers on Teaching Series

During Paul Moores The Elements of Teaching Critical Thinking workshop on February 10, many faculty expressed the need for a critical thinking course for all students. Because of the interest and apparent need for more discussion, we have scheduled another session on Friday, March 27, 9:00am-10:00am.

First Session

We suggest you attend both dates

Second Session

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Did You Know?The Center is for Teaching Assistants, too! All CTL services and resources available to faculty and staff are accessible for Graduate Assistants and Teaching Assistants. Moreover, we have workshops just for Graduate and Teaching Assistants. Pragmatic Practices, describes the workshops, which are all dedicated to the practical aspects of teaching well. 7 Principles of Good Practice by Chickering and Gamson

For more information on our workshops or to register, contact the Center at: ctl@bgsu.edu, 419.372.6898, or www.bgsu.edu/ctl/page11755.html

This newsletter is a publication of the Center for Teaching and Learning. Visit us online at www.bgsu.edu/ctl/ or in 201 University Hall. 5

offers a framework to talk about the teaching methods to best impact student success. Learning Styles reviews instruments available to help students understand their learning styles and to maximize their specific styles. Teaching Tips is guided by situations and topics relevant to participants practices and pedagogy. You can sign up for one or all of the workshops by calling the Center 372-6898, emailing ctl@bgsu.edu, or going to our workshop page http://www.bgsu.edu/ctl/page11755.html.

DiscussionsInstructional Design

Active Learning and Problem-based Learning Strategies

Tuesday, March 17, 2:30pm-4:00pm

Designing Courses for Significant Learning (from L. Dee Fink)

Wednesday, April 22, 10:00am-11:30am

Reflecting, Writing, and Collaborating to Learn Using BGSU Blogs

Wednesday, March 25, 2:30pm-3:45pm

Pragmatic Practices for Teaching Assistants

Monday, February 23, 11:00am-12:00pm

Monday, March 2, 11:00am-12:00pm

Active and Team Based LearningTuesday, March 31, 11:00am-12:15pm

TARGETing Student Motivation Through the Classroom Environment

Tuesday, February 24, 1:30pm-2:30pm

WorkshopsCreative Commons: Licensing and Sharing your Work

Thursday, March 19, 1:15pm-2:30pm

Learning Styles

Teaching Tips

Extending the Classroom Experience with Podcasting

Tuesday, February 17, 1:00pm-2:00pmFriday, March 6, 2:30pm-3:30pmThursday, April 9, 8:30am-9:30am

Introduction to Teaching and Learning in SecondLife (BGSU Island and Beyond)

Wednesday, March 18, 12:00pm-1:00pmThursday, April 9, 1:00pm-2:00pm

Learning 2.0 with Web 2.0 ToolsThursday, March 5, 10:00am-11:00amWednesday, April 8, 2:00pm-3:00pmMonday, April 20, 2:00pm-3:00pm

Using Audacity to Create Podcasts for Learning

Friday, March 20, 10:30am-11:30am

Introduction to Clickers for Classroom Assessment

Tuesday, April 21, 9:30am-10:30am

Advanced Uses of Clickers in Higher EducationTuesday, February 24, 3:30pm-4:30pmTuesday, April 28, 3:30pm-4:30pm